Abilene Zoological Gardens, Zoo in Abilene, United States.

Abilene Zoological Gardens is a zoo in Abilene, Texas, that is home to animals from Africa, Asia, and the Americas. The grounds are laid out with clearly marked paths connecting different habitat areas, making it easy to move from one section to another.

The zoo was founded in 1919 at a different location in Abilene before moving to its current site. The relocation gave it more space and allowed for the creation of larger, more varied animal habitats.

The zoo's name recalls the original Abilene Zoological Gardens, built in Fair Park in 1919; locals now call that park Rose Park. The Abilene Zoological Society, formed in 1963, still helps fund the zoo alongside the city. Visitors can watch giraffes being fed by hand at the Giraffe Safari deck, opened in 2016.

The zoo sits inside Nelson Park and is easy to walk through, as all areas are connected by paved paths. Because Abilene gets very hot in summer, a morning visit tends to be more comfortable than arriving in the middle of the day.

The zoo has a dedicated giraffe station where visitors can stand at platform level and feed the animals by hand. Getting that close to a giraffe, just a few feet away, is something most people do not expect when they arrive.